Second Anniversary
by Skysha-Tranqui
Summary: Obviously, an anniversary ficlet. Spander in content, so there's the slash warning for you. Was originally written for the LJ community Bloodclaim, which has just had it's second anniversary and it's a story of two's. Please read, enjoy, and, if possible


Disclaimer: I don't own Buffy or any of it's characters, so don't sue me please!

Warning: Slash, yaoi, man-love

Pairing: Spander of course

Plot: Written for Bloodclaim's 2nd Birthday! I decided to be original (cough Not! cough) and write a Spander anniversary piece. Then I got the number 2 stuck in my head and decided to run with it. Post-Buffy and post-Angel, there's no mention of what's happened at the end of Angel, but somehow the pair have found each other again. Xander's working as a carpenter, finally, and also a building consultant (as I say almost straight away in the fic!). Spike is…Spike! shrug

Reviews are always welcome, I hope you all enjoy, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY Bloodclaim!

Trust can look like dumbness

It started with breakfast.

Working as a carpenter often gave Xander the luxury of choosing his own work times, which of course led to extra long lie-ins. Working as a some-time building consultant meant that, yes, he was now the person other people went to for advice (even if only on building houses), but it also meant that some days he was dragged out of bed early.

At times like that he'd stumble over the piles of discarded clothes, slump into the shower and let it do its thing, then fumble his way through three cups of coffee before hitting the road.

This morning had been different.

Out of bed by 6:30am, washed and kinda dressed by 6:45am (afterall, who at the building site would care that he hadn't shaved and was wearing mismatched socks?), and about to throw back his first cup of coffee at 7:00am…when he noticed something new.

Somehow, out of no-where, a plate of food had appeared on the countertop. Two rashers of bacon. Two sausages. Two fried tomatoes. Two mushrooms. Two slices of toast. And two mini twinkies right next to the plate.

Now, if it had been one of the other Scoobies who had discovered this bizarre manifestation, there would no doubt have been a thorough examination of the meal, maybe some kind of magical scan, and definitely an interrogation of those in the general vicinity. With Xander as a Scooby, you'd have thought he'd be cautious enough to do the same thing…

…Xander ate the breakfast.

What? It was hot, it was perfectly arranged, and it was edible! And if there's twinkies for desert…well, whatever demon laid the trap was his kind of demon!

Then a second odd thing happened, later, at the building site.

Halfway through destroying the construction worker's current building plans – by pointing out all the things they'd forgotten to put in, and explaining why the building would collapse if they took out _that_ wall in particular – Xander became aware of a small tapping at the office window.

Any other Scooby would have automatically become suspicious, may have made everyone in the room drop to the floor and take cover, _definitely_ would have approached the window apprehensively and peeked before doing anything else.

Xander strode over to the window and, yanking it open, stuck his head out to yell at the kids throwing stones. Only to feel something soft strike his face.

Blinking down at the ground, he noted the pink fluttering things he'd obviously just been hit with and frowned in confusion.

It was as he was about to stick his head back inside the office that he was hit a second time, and again he blinked down at the soft pink things. This time however, he realised what they were. For some unexplainable reason he'd just been hit in the face with flower petals. Twice. Shrugging it off he went back to the mangled building plans and the pale-faced construction workers.

Nothing else happened that day, and the rather naïve Scooby shrugged the strange events off as being a fluke. Rubbing a hand tiredly over his face, Xander almost gave in to the temptation of having a nap on the desk he'd been given to use for the day, but thinking about what would be waiting for him at home quickly rid him of the idea. Quickly tidying up the desk he grabbed everything he'd brought with him and left the rest, then hopped up from his chair and headed off home for the night.

Once back at his house, Xander kicked off his work boots, shrugged off his jacket, set his keys down on the coffee table and headed for the kitchen.

Everything was dim in the house, and it was a rather bewildered Scooby who flicked on the kitchen light, only to come to a halt in the doorway.

"'Ere now, pet, you wouldn't want to ruin the mood, would you?"

The familiar, if slightly chiding, voice of his lover immediately set Xander at ease – meaning he did little more than blink as the blonde-haired vampire casually flicked the kitchen light back off, leaving the two of them bathed in the soft glow from the two candles alight on the kitchen table.

Staring at the pool of pink rose petals scattered over the wooden top of his hand-carved table, it wasn't until Spike took a hold of his hand that he snapped out of his daze.

"Spike, what the…?"

If a brain dead, dumbfounded gawp was the effect the vampire had been aiming for, Spike would have considered the effort a success – luckily for Xander, Spike wanted something a bit more complex than that, and decided enlightening the man would be a good way to go about getting it.

"It's our anniversary. Two years to the day…or night, however you measure it!"

Letting a smug smile creep over his face, Spike gently pressed up against Xander's back, running a suggestive finger along the neck of his boy's t-shirt.

"Bbbut…you didn't do anything like this last year!"

A small tut escaped Spike's lips as he pulled his luv back against him, teeth latching on to a soft earlobe and worrying it gently.

"Silly boy, last year was the first year, this is the _second_ year – much more celebratory worthy! Afterall, this year practical stands for a couple…there's been two of them."

Mind trying to puzzle out the logic of that, Xander paused as his gaze again landed on what was also laid out on the table, in amongst the rose petals.

Two wine glasses. Two bottles of champagne. Two plates of lasagne. And two chocolate cakes with the number two drawn on in pink icing.

"So…the theme seems to be…two?"

"Uh huh," Spike mumbled between nibbles, distracted by the smooth, tanned, neck at his disposal. "Two of everything for breakfast, two facefuls of petals – wildly romantic, since I risked burning – two plates of food, two glasses and two cakes."

"So…does that mean we'll be having _two_ of something else as well?"

The overly innocent tone of voice immediately caught Spike's demon's attention, knowing instantly that his boy was up to something. A wicked gleam entered the vampire's eyes as he realised what Xander was up to.

"But of course…"

Having a vampire practically purring in your ear was enough to set even the dimmest of alarm bells ringing, and despite loving his vampire more than anything in the world, Xander was still not the dimmest of people (though his behaviour that day might have suggested otherwise), and he was definitely alarmed.

"…we'll be having twice the amount of sex we normally have!"

Ouch.

Already wincing in anticipation of the morning after, Xander nonetheless let his vampire lift him up and carry him towards the bedroom.

Afterall, if Spike had gone to so much trouble as to mark this anniversary on the calendar hanging in the kitchen, then it was only fair Xander let his love carry out the event as he'd planned.

That was the kind of trust their love inspired.


End file.
